Playing out from the back.

[Jaguar2013]

Is it time to scrap playing out from the back? It has cost us too many goals and puts us under unnecessary pressure. Too many times we are caught in possession and lose the ball. Although not advocating the long ball all the time but if we don't get the ball from our defence reaching our forwards from playing out from the back perhaps we should try a different approach. Willian was effective when he got the ball tonight but lacked support up front because too many players were in our own half and he didn't have enough attacking options for him to take advantage of the situation.

[Deeping_white]

No - it's a system we've been playing for years under three consecutive managers and from the first team down to youth teams, and literally every half decent team retains a level of playing out from the back. The bigger issue at the moment is that we don't have a comfortable ball playing right footed centre back which is giving chances away. Also that our midfield shape when passing across the back is quite stretched like tonight when Bassey basically had no midfielder within 30 yards of him for either goal to make an easy pass which compounds the issue of giving the ball away.

Besides, our entire squad is built around possession football, and if we were going to change to a direct style of play, we'd need a change of personnel to make it work which you can't do mid season and would need at least two summer windows to make that transition happen (look at Wolves who've tried to move from 3-4-3 to 4-3-3 and are struggling over a year on). We can't go long ball with the forwards we have as we'd just be giving the ball back to the opposition every time and inviting pressure on non-stop

[WolverineFFC]

No - it's a system we've been playing for years under three consecutive managers and from the first team down to youth teams, and literally every half decent team retains a level of playing out from the back. The bigger issue at the moment is that we don't have a comfortable ball playing right footed centre back which is giving chances away. Also that our midfield shape when passing across the back is quite stretched like tonight when Bassey basically had no midfielder within 30 yards of him for either goal to make an easy pass which compounds the issue of giving the ball away.

Besides, our entire squad is built around possession football, and if we were going to change to a direct style of play, we'd need a change of personnel to make it work which you can't do mid season and would need at least two summer windows to make that transition happen (look at Wolves who've tried to move from 3-4-3 to 4-3-3 and are struggling over a year on). We can't go long ball with the forwards we have as we'd just be giving the ball back to the opposition every time and inviting pressure on non-stop

Your point about the midfield being so stretched is what I think needs to be fixed. I don't understand the point of getting so spread out across the pitch if many of the attacking players don't take advantage of the space. The risk/reward is all out of whack.

[lamby]

Is it time to scrap playing out from the back?

It relies on CBs being able to play out the back. Our 2 right footed CBs are injured and Bassey got caught.

Replace Bassey with Diop/Tosin and put a decent striker up front and we get a point out of that game.

[Snibbo]

Also relies on midfielders, making themselves available for the pass out from the back. And as the commentator said, re Bassey's stuff up, there was nobody making themselves available for him to play to.

[RAY Rock ????]

Bassey didn't get caught he just can't kick the ball properly with his right foot. My 11 years could have passed the ball better than him . We are going to concede loads of goals in the coming weeks if silva doesn't change the formation 5-3-2 is the way forward get bassey in the middle ream on one side and Tete or Castange on the other.
Leno
Tete or Castagne , Bassey , Ream
Traoré, Palhinha ,  Reed,  Iwobi or Jedi
Pereira
Raul , Dec Reid

[Matt10]

Also relies on midfielders, making themselves available for the pass out from the back. And as the commentator said, re Bassey's stuff up, there was nobody making themselves available for him to play to.

I'm a huge fan of his, but Lukic has to get himself ball-side of the Spurs player on the 2nd goal, and for the first, the pass was just barely in front of him. We perform this passing sequence out from the back all the time, it's nothing new.

The main issue is the recovery after we've lost the ball in those situations. Ream and Bassey run into each other because Ream is overcommitting to Son's left foot (why???) rather than cutting off the angle of the right-footed shot. Saw the same thing against Brentford.

[S.F.Sorrow]

We don't have much choice with our current squad. Our forwards don't have the physical presence for long balls.

[Matt10]

We don't have much choice with our current squad. Our forwards don't have the physical presence for long balls.

Not sure how that's accurate. Jimenez won so many headers versus Arsenal, even won some today. Holds up the ball well in the past too. I'd much prefer seeing long balls to him than Reed, which we tried again when he came on.

[SG]

No - it's a system we've been playing for years under three consecutive managers and from the first team down to youth teams, and literally every half decent team retains a level of playing out from the back. The bigger issue at the moment is that we don't have a comfortable ball playing right footed centre back which is giving chances away. Also that our midfield shape when passing across the back is quite stretched like tonight when Bassey basically had no midfielder within 30 yards of him for either goal to make an easy pass which compounds the issue of giving the ball away.

Besides, our entire squad is built around possession football, and if we were going to change to a direct style of play, we'd need a change of personnel to make it work which you can't do mid season and would need at least two summer windows to make that transition happen (look at Wolves who've tried to move from 3-4-3 to 4-3-3 and are struggling over a year on). We can't go long ball with the forwards we have as we'd just be giving the ball back to the opposition every time and inviting pressure on non-stop

Without a comfortable ball playing RCB surely that is a good reason to modify the system temporarily at least. We're trying to fit the proverbial square peg in a round hole. We're not scoring goals so need to do everything to prevent conceding unnecessary ones

[F(f)CUK]

I was going to write the same thing as Lamby. Bassey was uncomfortable playing on the right.

[Lambo]

Bassey was given a Hospital pass for their 2nd goal, no way should he have received the ball in that position. There are times for the good old hoof and that was one.

[Wolf]

Bassey was given a Hospital pass for their 2nd goal, no way should he have received the ball in that position. There are times for the good old hoof and that was one.

Agreed. There are times for the long diagonal, the long down the line, the plain old hoof in the air, and even times to just put the ball out of play. Conceding goals from dogmatic adherence to passing the ball out from and around the back, at all levels of football, does my head in.

[filham]

That short passing in our third of the pitch gives me the jitters , we must give the ball away from tim to time.
Bassy needs to train for the next week with a boot only on his right foot to make him use it more and help development.

[WolverineFFC]

Also relies on midfielders, making themselves available for the pass out from the back. And as the commentator said, re Bassey's stuff up, there was nobody making themselves available for him to play to.
[/quote

Also relies on midfielders, making themselves available for the pass out from the back. And as the commentator said, re Bassey's stuff up, there was nobody making themselves available for him to play to.

I'm a huge fan of his, but Lukic has to get himself ball-side of the Spurs player on the 2nd goal, and for the first, the pass was just barely in front of him. We perform this passing sequence out from the back all the time, it's nothing new.

The main issue is the recovery after we've lost the ball in those situations. Ream and Bassey run into each other because Ream is overcommitting to Son's left foot (why???) rather than cutting off the angle of the right-footed shot. Saw the same thing against Brentford.

You're spot on regarding the 1st goal. Bassey makes an inaccurate pass but recovers well enough to defend his position.

Ream is struggling this season. He is a step slow too often. He does not react quickly enough to the turn over playing Son onside THEN panics and takes out Bassey who appeared to have Son covered.